Garry Pitt, 66, stole a hat from a charity shop. He told police Bilbo Baggins inspired it. He was found guilty and fined.
The court found Pitt guilty of theft. He had to pay £384. Pitt said he did not steal the blue hat. He took it from a mannequin, put it on his head, and left. This happened last year on November 28.
Police saw Pitt on CCTV at the police station, waiting for another appointment. Officers asked him about the stolen hat. Pitt gave the hat back to the police, saying nobody was around.
Bodycam footage showed Pitt talking to the officer, claiming Bilbo Baggins was a trained burglar. Pitt said he walked out with the hat on his head and forgot it was there. He noticed on the way to his police appointment.
The prosecutor asked why he did not go back. Pitt, who wore leg braces, said he couldn’t walk back to the shop because he was going to the police station. Pitt said he did not know that he committed a crime and thought it was just a hat. He claimed that if police did not say anything, he would have returned it, but his injuries prevented him from walking back.